San Jose State used an interception in the end zone midway through the third quarter to shift momentum in its favor, then silenced the season-high 26,022 fans at Hughes Stadium for CSU’s homecoming game with a 34-27 victory over the Rams.

“It was very disappointing,” Colorado State University coach Jim McElwain said afterward. “I’m not going to mince words. That was a game we had an opportunity to win, and we didn’t win it.”

And that’s what made it so hard for the Rams (2-4, 0-1 Mountain West Conference) to swallow.

San Jose State (3-3, 2-1) used the kind of explosive plays in its passing game that the Rams had spent all week preparing to stop. Quarterback David Fales, a senior who threw for 4,193 yards and 33 touchdowns a year ago, hooked up with running back Jarrod Lawson for an 83-yard touchdown early in the second quarter and also threw touchdown passes of 77 yards to Chandler Jones and 62 yards to Tyler Winston.

Fales threw for 431 yards and the three touchdowns while completing 28 of 35 passes.

Just as frustrating for the Rams, though, was his ability to keep plays alive with his feet. Several of Fales’ throws came after he had eluded a defender or two in the backfield. He also scrambled seven times for 46 yards through the heart of a CSU defense that was without nose tackle Calvin Tonga, who was held out because of “some personal issues” he was dealing with, McElwain said. Fales’ 33 rushing yards after subtracting two sacks for minus-13 yards, was a career high.

“That’s frustrating for all of us,” said CSU linebacker Cory James, who had the two sacks. “We want a sack, we want to make a game-changing play, but the quarterback is good enough to scramble out of it. It was pretty frustrating.”

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It was that kind of day for the Rams. They had the Spartans in their grasp but couldn’t take them down.

Lawson, making his first start at running back for the Spartans, ran for 98 yards on 18 carries and had three catches for 104 yards. Winston finished with 151 receiving yards on eight catches, and Jones had five catches for 96 yards. The Spartans finished with 608 yards of total offense and successfully converted 11 of 18 third-down plays.

CSU quarterback Garrett Grayson threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns, and the Rams gained 447 yards of total offense.

But receivers dropped several of Grayson’s passes, including one that got away from tight end Kivon Cartwright at the 3-yard line and landed in the hands of a diving Jimmy Pruitt in the end zone for a pivotal touchback late in the third quarter.

Instead of taking what would have been a 31-24 lead at the time, the Rams lost the ball. Then, they had to watch Fales and the San Jose State offense march 79 yards on 16 plays to take the lead on an 18-yard field goal by Austin Lopez with 12:35 remaining.

Another interception, on a diving catch by San Jose State cornerback Bene Benwikere on a deep ball thrown by Grayson midway through the fourth quarter, was followed five plays later by the 62-yard TD pass from Fales to Winston.

Another big play. Another San Jose State touchdown.

Another CSU loss.

“Give them all the credit,” McElwain said, looking every bit as distraught as he sounded. “They made the plays when they needed to.”

And the Rams didn’t, disappointing not only themselves but also the largest crowd to see them play a game at Hughes in two years.

“It was a fantastic crowd out there,” McElwain said. “I just feel sick for the homecoming crowd that came out to support these guys, and we didn’t send them home with a win.”